The caravan has now entered the Kingdom of Nothing…the Madugu [Tamashek word for Khabīr] is the only one who knows the way. Only he can read the markings in the dunes. Only he can read the shadows thrown by the camels ears.
-Tuareg: Warriors of the Dunes, 2013, documentary film, about crossing the Ténéré Desert
The Salt Route between Agadez and Bilma Oasis may be emptier than the Darb al-’Arba’īn, but you should not call it a Kingdom of Nothing. Its dunes are no more unmarked nor its shadows more unreadable. What appears most daunting to the Khawaja is to the Khabīr, the Madugu, just another step forward on his trail.